1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to ornaments for short haired animals as well as systems and methods for attaching the same to the hair, fur or skin.
2. Description of the Related Art
Owners of short haired pets commonly wish to place bows or other ornaments on their animals. While clip on ornaments are well known in the prior art, they tend to be impractical for use on animals with short hair. It is also known in the prior art to have ornaments and functional devices (e.g. devices that dispense pet care substances) attached to a pet by means of a collar. While these devices indeed can be used to secure an ornament to a pet, they are in a relatively fixed position (the neck) which may not be where the owner wants the ornament. There are also prior art solutions available that use “stick on” ornaments, but each of these has its own drawbacks.
U.S. Patent Application 2008/0121557 to Jacobsen (entitled “Reusable Pet and Infant Hairbow Kit and Method”) discloses a hair bow kit for infants and children having thin hair or no hair on their scalp. The hair bow kit comprises a closable supply of a hair-safe and scalp-safe liquid adhesive and a plurality of infant hair bows/ornaments in a variety of sizes. The infant hair bows may have a substantially flat lower surface able to receive glue. The patent application also discloses a method of applying a smaller hair bow/ornament to an infant's scalp having thin hair by providing a hair-safe liquid adhesive in a closable container having a tip suitable for delivery of a single drop of glue to the scalp of the infant, The method includes the steps of providing an infant hair bow, placing one drop of the adhesive on the scalp or the bow, and pressing the bow to the infant's scalp.
While the forgoing solution provides a removable and reusable method of attachment, the use of a separate liquid adhesive may not be practical or convenient in certain situations and environments.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,024,879 to Stryker (entitled “Stick-a-brow”) discloses an eyebrow beauty kit of hair bearing flexible adhesive backed material. The adhesive backing enables an artificial eyebrow to be detachably applied to the human face. Eyebrow color may be changed to match hair, wig or clothing.
While the foregoing patent provides a solution with a convenient adhesive backing, it does not deal with the problem of attaching an ornament to the hair or fur of short haired pets in a manner such that it can be easily and humanly removed without discomfort to the animal. It also does not provide the means for reapplying the same ornament to a pet after it is removed from the hair or fur.
A stick on jewelry product is also commercially available from NEWD™ by Alessandro Masini. NEWD's Skin Touch™ technology utilizes a special adhesive film that allows the user to apply jewelry directly to the skin. In order to apply the jewelry, the skin is first cleaned with soap or alcohol and dried. The adhesive film is peeled from the transparent strip. A protective film is then peeled from the adhesive and the jewel is placed onto the clean area of skin. Each time the jewel is removed or repositioned the adhesive film must be replaced.
While the foregoing solution provides an excellent method for attaching and reattaching jewelry to human skin, it does not appear to have been designed for attaching or reattaching an ornament to the fur or hair of a short haired pet.